Plant/ tree ID

[a1993h]

I was browsing through the fields today and saw 2 plants Ive never seen before. I found that I actually know very little about the local plant-life. Anyway, here they are:

A) These were kind of like bamboo, growing up in hollow stalks:

B)

All help appreciated!
Cheers, Andy.

 

[British Red]

Top one looks suspiciously like Japanese Knotweed to me

Bottom could well be Rosebay Willowherb

 

[a1993h]

Cool, thanks British Red!

 

[shaggystu]

Top one looks suspiciously like Japanese Knotweed to me

Bottom could well be Rosebay Willowherb

couldn't agree more

stuart

 

[Toddy]

Yep, spot on I reckon

cheers,
Toddy

p.s. the Japanese Knotweed is edible, but incredibly invasive. There are stringent guidelines about moving any of it and it's subsequent disposal.
The fireweed too is edible (personally it's a but other's have posted saying it's fine) and it can be used for cordage apparantly. The seedy heads dry well for tinder, and the dried out stems make firecrackle....dry kindling that carries flames through the rest of the fire.

M

 

[treelore]

Yep the top one is Japanese knot weed and is right you can eat it but take nothing bigger then the thickness of your thumb, its like rhubarb. The other one could be Himalayan balsam. I would do the land owner a favour and let then know as its incredibly invasive….the EA should also be informed too.

 

[British Red]

Nah its not Himalaya Balsam - I have that in my garden - the leaves are wider

 

[Toddy]

You know the seeds of the Himalayan Balsam can be eaten ? A tasty munchie, bit like eating sunflower or hemp seeds.
Damn all use for anything else though afaik.

cheers,
M

 

[British Red]

We rip the s***ing things up before they can set seed. Its a war now

 

[Toddy]

I was told by a herptologist at one of the Parks Days that there's a weedkiller for it and for Japanese Knotweed now that's safe near waterways and amphibians.
Never heard another word about it though
Be awfully useful if it worked

cheers,
M

 

[British Red]

Thankfully I have never had knotweed. Himalayan Balsam is easy to eradicate. Just pull it up on sight for two years. We have a few "stragglers" in the deep hedges and dykes...but we will get them!

 

[treelore]

the chemical you use on JKW is round-up....the stuff someone with spraying tickets can get, domestic stuff works but needs alot more to do the job...best time to do it is when they are young and on fresh growth, if old stuff then you can inject into the stem. i agree with Red it`s a war and no quarter should be given

 

[marcusleftthesite]

The local council have been trying to get rid of it up the road from me for years now but it always comes back no matter what they treat it with.

 

[treelore]

thats local councils for you, all the stuff i`ve done for customers has died....but it does depend on where it is and the amount.

 

[crwydryny]

as everyone else has said teh top one is japanese knotweed. an invasive species here in the UK. a section as small as your thumbnail can sprout a new plant and as such it's generally advised to inform the local council of it's whereabouts so that they can clear it and prevent it's spread as it is harmful to local habitats as well as infrastructure (it's been reported to grow through concreate and tarmac)

the seccond one, my first guess would be hymalayan balsam (again an invasive species, and I spent much of last thursday ripping it out from a patch of local woodland as part of a woodland managment project with a local conservation charity) though on the plus side it's sap is supposedly good for treating rashes (though I've also heard that it can have adverse effects on sensitive skin)

it could also be rosebay willowherb (aka fireweed) which has a simalar appearience until they flower (willowherb has purple/magenta flowers on the end of narrow "stalks") personally to me it looks more like willowherb than balsam from the pictures

 

[Melonfish]

rhododendron, Himalayan balsam and Japanese knotweed are on the "Pull up the roots on site" list. awful stuff the lot.
we get a lot of rhodie and balsam on the moss which has escaped from local gardens. no knotweed yet but we reckon its a matter of time.